Bathtub gin, flappers gone wild and a well placed rifle are at the heart of the comic Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Nice Work If You Can Get It.
The charming 1920s pastiche features a story set around some of George and Ira Gershwin’s greatest hits. The show stars Broadway veterans Kelli O’Hara -- who received her fourth Tony nomination in the role of bootlegger Billie Bendix -- and Matthew Broderick, who plays a wealthy playboy with a thing for said freewheeling bootlegger. The plot is full of whimsy, and is at times outlandish in its jollity. But that’s purposeful. The show pays tribute to a long list of Jazz Age musicals where the story takes a backseat to song, dance, and a whole lot of gags, perpetrated with glee by the cast -- including Tony winners Judy Kaye, as the prohibitionist Estonia Dulworth, and Michael McGrath as the bootlegger-turned-butler Cookie McGee.
Not every number included in the production is a recognizable tune. Obscure tracks include the short but sweet "Hanging Around with You," from the 1930 political satire Strike Up the Band, and the comic "Demon Rum," which was written for, but never actually recorded for the 1947 Betty Grable film The Shocking Miss Pilgrim. But the standouts are surely O’Hara’s shimmering ballad, "Someone To Watch Over Me," (from 1926's Oh, Kay!) and "'S Wonderful" from 1927’s Funny Face.
Audio is no longer available for this feature. But you can watch a performance video from the Tony Awards, featuring Kelli O'Hara and Matthew Broderick, below:
Gretta joined Soundcheck in 2010, having spent several years as a freelance radio documentary producer. Her stories on birders, fishermen, nurses, performance artists and even the Yale Whiffenpoofs have aired on a variety of outlets, from WNYC's Studio 360 to APM's The Story. She holds a B.A. in American Studies from Brown University and studied radio production at The Salt Institute for Documentary Studies. She was a cellist in the rock band Cursive from 2001-2005.
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